November 1, 2018 (MLN): Advisor to Prime Minister, Mr. Razzak Dawood has announced that Pakistan has improved its ranking by 11 points, and moved from 147 to 136 in the ‘Doing Business Report 2019’, published by World Bank, which measures the performance in ease of doing business in 190 countries.
The rankings of countries in the report indicate competitiveness as well as highlighting the areas where reforms are immediately needed to improve business climate in the country. Since the launch of DB report in 2002, it is the first time that Pakistan has jumped 11 points in one year.
Board of Investment, being the secretariat of 'Prime Minister's Steering Committee on Doing Business Reforms', briefed the press on the reforms behind improvements made in Pakistan’s ranking.
The three reforms that have been acknowledged include;
Pakistan made starting a business easier by introducing the online one-stop registration system
Replaced several forms for incorporation with a single application
Established information exchange mechanism between the Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP) and Federal Board of Revenue (FBR).
While talking to the media, Mrs. Fareena Mazhar, Executive Director General BOI, explained that in addition to introduction of reforms, other positive data corrections also contributed to the unprecedented improvement in ranking of Pakistan.
She acknowledged the efforts of the dedicated teams of Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP), Federal Board of Revenue(FBR), State Bank of Pakistan (SBP), Planning and Development department, Punjab and Sindh Boards of Investment (BOI).
She emphasized that assistance from World Bank was critical to the reform process.
